most of you who know me know that i don’t like touching other people or being touched, unless you fall into one of two categories: a) someone i’ve been dating or whatever or b) someone i know well enough and feel comfortable enough to be platonically affectionate. 98% of all people are not in these two categories. only since i’ve lived in minnesota has hugging become mostly acceptable to me, but i still won’t really initiate a hug.
in france, when you are friends with someone, you have to kiss them hello and goodbye on the cheek, and the number of kisses and what side you start on varies across france. there is only one person so far i have been doing this with, and it is the most bizarre thing to me. maybe it will be good for me and that i will come to like shaking hands because it means i won’t have to kiss anyone anymore once i’m home. or maybe i’ll just stop being a weirdo about these kind of things.
i am now off to meet with two french families i might work for outside of school for extra money. they both seem really nice so i’m excited and i hope it works out. citibank has managed to mess up my credit card every day i’ve been here, so i need all the cash i can get until i start getting paid.
they kiss on both cheeks in Montreal too, it was hard for me to break the habit when I moved to Vancouver.
You don’t even have to actually kiss them, just as long as you do the act & kinda graze cheeks & kiss the air is fine too.
Isn’t that funny?
This happens a fair amount in Washington and New York as well. I’m really bad at it. Oh well, in many parts of the Middle East it is considered an “honor” to “share breath” – I’d rather awkwardly nuzzle a cheek than taste someone’s lunch throughout a conversation.